The disclosed invention is an improvement over inventors' prior invention U.S. Pat. No. 3,934,469, issued Jan. 27, 1976.
As an aid to improving steam flood efficiency in secondary recovery in old oil or depleted wells for example, it is greatly beneficial to know the steam quality at any particular location in the well or sandface of a steam injection well. It would be desirable to collect and trap a representative sample of the steam liquid phase or water droplets flowing to the surface and retrieve this sample for analyzing while the steam vapor phase or vapor passes on through. The sample could then be checked for either total dissolved solids or chloride content and compared to the steam generator feedwater total dissolved solids or chlorides. Hence, the quality may be determined from a ratio of the total dissolved solids or chlorides of the steam entering the wellhead to the total dissolved solids or chlorides in the steam water droplets from the sampler at any desired location in the well, as at the bottom of the well, if so desired.